s along a road on which he never was
before, thinks every house he sees afar off to be his inn, and not
finding it so, directs his trust to the next, and thus from house to
house till he comes to the inn, so our soul at once, on entering the new
and untraveled road of this life, turns her eyes to the goal of her
supreme good, and therefore whatever thing she sees which seems to have
in it some good, she believes to be that. And because her knowledge at
first is imperfect, not being experienced or instructed, small goods
seem to her great, therefore she begins with desiring them. Wherefore we
see children desire exceedingly an apple; and then proceeding further,
desire a little bird; and further still a beautiful dress; and then a
horse, and then a woman, and then riches not great, and then greater,
and then as great as can be. And this happens because in none of these
does she find that which she is seeking, and she trusts to find it
further on....

Truly this way is lost by error as the roads of earth are; for as from
one city to another there is of necessity one best and straightest way,
and another that always leads away from it, that is, one which goes in
another direction, and many others, some less diverging, and some
approaching less near, so in human life are divers roads, of which one
is the truest, and another the most deceitful, and certain ones less
deceitful, and certain less true. And as we see that that which goes
straightest to the city fulfills desire, and gives repose after
weariness, and that which goes contrary never fulfills it, and can never
give repose, so it falls out in our life: the good traveler arrives at
the goal and repose, the mistaken never arrives there, but with much
weariness of his mind always looks forward with greedy eyes.

'The Banquet,' iv. 12.

III

THE NOBLE SOUL AT THE END OF LIFE

The noble Soul in old age returns to God as to that port whence she set
forth on the sea of this life. And as the good mariner, when he
approaches port, furls his sails, and with slow course gently enters it,
so should we furl the sails of our worldly affairs and turn to God with
our whole mind and heart, so that we may arrive at that port with all
sweetness and peace. And in regard to this we have from our own nature a
great lesson of sweetness, that in such a death as this there is no pain
nor any bitterness, but as a ripe fruit is easily and without violence
detached from its twig, so